Alibaba's Qwen unveils preview of flagship AI model

HANGZHOU/NEW YORK —

Alibaba has released a preview of its next flagship artificial-intelligence model under the Qwen brand, according to Bloomberg (https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMisAFBVV95cUxPcU9LUFM0anRtbzRhYjQ3NUFiWlE5VHVCb3pGRzJfUTRsT2M2a19KUnNhN0lnVTFNZmxmV3hrSlRJZnZpOUhvRFJxdm1PT0dHa3pPSGNVVWZTclJJWGdQZXd3REhwUU5pc1dZUWdiYVNPRTdCUXRDZWZzRldCY3R0aFl3b1VFcm8xRU51aGpKaEhoVlFPUVdNLVBWNUthbkdpQmppU2JZNlRvZEJ4NzNxNw?oc=5). The move positions Alibaba at the frontier of China's fast-accelerating AI push and intensifies competition with US developers such as OpenAI and Anthropic.

Qwen is Alibaba's open-source model family and among the most widely used AI models globally; a new flagship release extends the company's strategy of giving away powerful models to build its cloud-computing business and an ecosystem of developers. The preview follows a wave of breakthroughs from Chinese labs this year, including Moonshot AI's Kimi K3 model reported earlier this month.

The launch lands as the global AI race reshapes equity markets and corporate spending. Investors have rotated sharply in and out of AI-linked stocks in recent weeks, and the rapid cadence of model releases from Chinese firms has added to debate over whether the United States' lead in frontier AI is narrowing.

For Alibaba, the AI effort is central to a turnaround effort after a lengthy regulatory crackdown on Chinese technology; the company has been funneling investment into cloud and AI to reignite growth. A competitive flagship model strengthens its case as a leading supplier of AI infrastructure at a time when governments are scrutinising the cross-border flow of advanced AI technology.